Kid-friendly noodle restaurant in Gumi: floor seats at Menya Tanuki

There are days lately when the weather turns oddly chilly, or you just really crave warm noodle soup. I'd been craving proper Japanese ramen and mazesoba for a while, so I went to Menya Tanuki near Gumi Station's back exit!

Can you bring a stroller into Menya Tanuki? The seating

Menya Tanuki is a small ramen shop with just one floor-seating table and a handful of bar-table seats, so it's honestly not the kind of place you'd normally bring a baby to — but this mom's appetite ate her shame right along with the noodles. 😇 Lucky for us, when we showed up around 2pm on a weekend, the floor table happened to be free.

So we pulled out one chair next to it... squeezed the stroller in... and dug in happily. Here's how it went!

Menya Tanuki is already well known among ramen fans, and it's just as good for solo diners as it is for coming with a friend!! Bottom line first: the taste and the price were both so good my husband kept asking, half-joking, whether the owner was running a charity haha. (Because it's so affordable, plenty of students come here too!)

Where Menya Tanuki is and where to park

Menya Tanuki is right by Gumi Station's back exit, about a 5-minute walk away. It's perfect if you get off the train and get hungry, or as a stop on a date along Geumnidan-gil.

• Location: 5-minute walk from Gumi Station back exit
• Parking: free parking available with store use! (Parking on Geumnidan-gil is usually a nightmare, but here you get free parking support plus one spot right in front of the shop)
• Closed: every Tuesday, and the day of and day after Lunar New Year and Chuseok

What we ordered at Menya Tanuki: shoyu ramen and mazesoba

Looking at the menu, I was surprised — eating out has gotten so expensive lately that a bowl of ramen over ₩10,000 is common these days, but the prices at Menya Tanuki are really nice. (Even a bowl of gukbap costs over ₩10,000 now, ugh.) Because of the price I'd lowered my expectations a little, but one bite in and I was amazed; getting this level of care and quality in a Japanese noodle dish at this price these days... I hope the owner does really well.

Shoyu ramen: gentle smoky aroma and deep umami

The shoyu ramen came out first! Just looking at it, so neatly presented, made my mouth water. I took one spoonful of the broth first and immediately felt a deep, clean umami. They said they use their own homemade stock and homemade aromatic oil, and you could really tell — there was a nuttiness and depth you'd never get from store-bought broth.

The broth is rich but not overly greasy, clean enough that I kept going back for more! Even without adding extra toppings, there's plenty of meat, and instead of half an egg you get a whole one — when you break it down item by item, this place is even better value than it seems haha. The noodles had soaked up just the right amount of broth, so every slurp carried the full flavor of the stock through. If you like ramen, this is a flavor that's hard not to love!

The shrimp mandu (dumplings) we ordered alongside it were delicious too. Total bang for your buck,,

Mazesoba: the bowl you keep thinking about

Next up was the dish I'd really been looking forward to — mazesoba! 🧡🧡🧡 You pop the egg yolk and mix it into the chewy noodles with the meat topping and their special sauce, and while mixing it, the aroma of the flavored oil and the savory sauce rising up nearly drove me crazy. One big bite in, and I genuinely think this is the best mazesoba in Gumi... Being a homemade special sauce, it had a salty yet clingy umami that coated the noodles beautifully and chewily. The noodles themselves were incredibly springy and chewy, and eating them together with the toppings was pure art.

As you eat, a rich, savory, full-bodied flavor fills your mouth, and adding a little of the kelp vinegar on the table to taste gives it a whole different, refreshing, clean note.

At the end, mixing the leftover sauce with a bit of rice makes for the perfect finish! I first discovered mazesoba years ago at Kanda Soba in Daegu, and it was a whole new world for me. Since then I've eaten a lot of mazesoba, and nothing ever came close to Kanda Soba. But Menya Tanuki topped it, ugh. I really wish they delivered.

Verdict and tips for visiting Menya Tanuki

Menya Tanuki puts real care into every bowl, making their own broth and their own aromatic oil, and being able to have a satisfying, filling meal without breaking the bank made this a really high-satisfaction visit. Finding a ramen place that nails both value and flavor like this these days makes me genuinely grateful to the owner... haha.

If you're looking for a solo dining spot near Gumi Station, a casual date-night restaurant, or you're a ramen fanatic who loves rich broth and proper Japanese noodles, I highly recommend Menya Tanuki! Just remember it's closed on Tuesdays, so check the day before you go. I'll be back soon myself — dropping the baby off somewhere and coming back for the spicy mazesoba! 😋💝